170 PRACTICAL FLY FISHING 



in your rod and make him fight for all the line he gets 

 but if you attempt to " horse " him in he will pull 

 out the hook or snap the leader nine times out of ten. 

 Remember that an ordinary trout hook is a pretty small 

 affair. When the fish shows signs of tiring play him 

 some more ; then swing him up stream of you, put your 

 net down and let the fish back or float into it. 



The time of day has less to do with successful trout 

 fishing than in taking bass as trout are more often 

 found in fast water where the visibility is poor. I 

 have never had any particular success in early morning 

 fishing and a hot breakfast should never be sacrificed 

 for your eagerness to be up and at 'em. The evening 

 fishing is worth looking forward to. It is then that 

 the big hatches are on, in mid-season, and when large 

 trout come out to feed in earnest. There is only one 

 disadvantage in evening fishing and that is the pestifer- 

 ous mosquito. Head net, gloves and smoking help but 

 some dope is usually necessary. The famous one-two- 

 three formula of Nessmuk is good: one part penny- 

 royal, two parts castor oil, three parts pine tar. Sim- 

 mer together and bottle. A favorite in the middle 

 west and one I can recommend from personal experi- 

 ence is: equal parts of oil of tar, oil of cedar, olive oil 

 and citronella. Smear it on face, hands and neck. 

 It is dirty, messy stuff but mosquitos and black flies 

 stay away from it and it is healing to sunburn. 



Early in the spring, when snow water is running 

 into the stream, fly fishing is almost useless with 

 some notable exceptions. May, June and July are the 



